MR. BLITZER: Now
let's go back to the diplomatic effort involving the United States
to try to put together a coalition against terrorism. Earlier today
I spoke with the Secretary of State, Colin Powell.

Mr. Secretary, thank you so much for
joining us. Who is responsible for these attacks?

SECRETARY POWELL:
Well, the prime suspect, I think, is the al-Qaida organization,
which is essentially a holding company of terrorist organizations
that have worldwide presence. And the head of the al-Qaida
organization is Usama bin Laden.

Now, the evidence is still mounting
but certainly that organization, al-Qaida, is the prime suspect.

MR. BLITZER: Do you
believe that other terrorist organizations were cooperating with
al-Qaida and Usama bin Laden?

SECRETARY POWELL:
We don't have enough information yet to make that case, but we are
looking at every lead we have. Right now, the prime suspect is
al-Qaida, which is headed by Usama bin Laden.

MR. BLITZER: Is
there any evidence that any state in the region or around the world
may have supported, financed, directed, this operation?

SECRETARY POWELL:
We have not seen any such links yet, but you can believe we are
working hard to see whether such links exist.

MR. BLITZER: How do
you do that? How do you find out if there are such links?

SECRETARY POWELL:
Well, as you know, the FBI and other agencies of government are hard
at work. Some 4,000 FBI agents are working on this. And as they
look at those 19 terrorists who killed themselves September 11th,
they will start to turn up leads. And they'll follow those leads
and follow them wherever it takes them, one, to make sure there are
no other terrorists loose in the country, and, if there, let's get
after them and get on them and roll it up; and also, to find out the
origins of this group and to go after those origins and pull up the
sources and to find those who gave them haven, those who gave them
support, those who gave them financial support, and start ripping up
this entire network.

That is why we keep saying it's going
to be a long-term campaign against this enemy, whether it is
al-Qaida or any other terrorist organization that comes after us,
our interests, or, frankly, those after the civilized world.

MR. BLITZER: When
you say long term, how long?

SECRETARY POWELL:
We're probably going to be in the counter-terrorism business at a
very high level of intensity for as long as anyone can imagine, as
long as there are people out there who are willing to do the kinds
of things those terrorists did this week, then we're going to have
to be on guard and constantly looking for them, trying to penetrate
them and trying to stop them -- and not just respond to them, but to
stop them; get ahead of them, to get inside their decision cycle.

MR. BLITZER: This
is not weeks or months, but this is years?

SECRETARY POWELL: No, no. In the
near term we will go after the specific organization responsible for
what happened at the World Trade Center, at the Pentagon. And we'll
get the evidence and we'll get the goods on them. And we'll go
after them. And we've already started that. You've seen the
diplomatic effort that we've made over the last four or five days,
which has produced results already. And then we will do whatever is
necessary to take care of this organization and make sure they are
not able to commit this kind of offense against us again and against
the civilized world.

It's important to remember that it's
not just US citizens who were lost here. Some 40 countries lost
people in the World Trade Center. And they are all outraged. The
whole world is outraged over this kind of terrorist incident. And
it has to be a worldwide response, a worldwide campaign using all
the tools that are available to the United States and available to
like-minded nations around the world who see this as a scourge on
the face of the Earth to do something about it.

MR. BLITZER: As you
know, Usama bin Laden and al-Qaida, his organization, have operated
within Afghanistan, supported -- if you will -- by the Taliban
regime over there. The United States occasionally talks to the
Taliban leadership. What are you saying to them right now?

SECRETARY POWELL:
Well, we're not talking to them right now. But I expect we will be
in the days ahead. And we are going to make it clear to them that
they must comply with previous directions they have received from
the United Nations and other organizations to stop this, to expel
this organization, to destroy this organization, or to help us to
destroy this organization. And they will be held accountable for
the support they have given to this organization if that's who we
finally determine is responsible and we are going after them.

They will have to make their choice
-- whether they want to be on the receiving end of the full wrath of
the United States and others, or whether they want to get rid of
this curse that they have within their country.

MR. BLITZER: Do you
have any expectation that they will change their policy and
cooperate now with the US and the west and arrest, if you will, Usama bin Laden?

SECRETARY POWELL:
I'm not carrying an expectation. The only thing I'm looking for is
results. They either do or they don't. It's binary -- yes or no.
You either respond to this crisis, this tragedy, this horrible thing
that was perpetrated by perhaps al-Qaida and Usama bin Laden. And
all, all the indications point in that direction. You either
respond and rip them up, help us rip them up, get rid of them, or
you will suffer consequences.

MR. BLITZER: Now,
specifically what does that mean to the Taliban, who may be watching
right now?

SECRETARY POWELL:
They will --

MR. BLITZER: What
kind of consequences will they suffer?

SECRETARY POWELL:
They will suffer consequences. We have a variety of means at our
disposal, which are political, diplomatic, international, military,
intelligence -- lots of things that are available to us. All the
elements of national power will be brought to bear on this problem.

The Taliban have a problem right now
in hosting this kind of regime, in the form of the al-Qaida regime,
the al-Qaida network, and those who support the al-Qaida network.
And they will have to make a choice as to whether or not they are
willing to pay the price that they may have to pay to continue to
support this kind of activity.

MR. BLITZER: As you
well know, there have been reports over the years that this
organization, al-Qaida, Usama bin Laden's troops and forces, have
also operated in Yemen, in Sudan, and other countries. Are you
giving them the same warning?

SECRETARY POWELL:
Yes. We are talking to all of our friends and partners in this
coalition. And what we are saying to them, not necessarily a
warning, but saying to them, look, this is the time to end this.
Whatever host support you have been providing to this network, stop
it. There are UN resolutions and there are other directions from
international communities that these things should be ejected from
your country, these kinds of cells, this kind of activity.

And we are just going to remind them
of their responsibilities and let them know it will be a means by
which we measure our relationship with them in the future. It's not
necessarily a warning; it's just a clear statement of fact and
principle. We are going after them, and you can either help us go
after them, and if you choose not to help us go after them, this
will have an effect on the relationship that we have with you.

MR. BLITZER: There
are reports this morning that the Government of Pakistan is now
about to send a delegation into Afghanistan and demand the arrest of Usama bin Laden. Did you ask Pakistan to do that?

SECRETARY POWELL:
We have asked Pakistan for a number of things. I have seen that
report, and our Ambassador in Islamabad is in touch with Pakistani
authorities. And I know the Pakistani Ambassador will be on your
show a little later this morning. But I cannot confirm yet exactly
what the Pakistanis might be doing tomorrow.

I know that there is movement in such
a direction, and I know that the Pakistanis have made some contacts
in the UN on such a move. But we will wait to see, but I am not in
a position right now to confirm it.

MR. BLITZER: Have
you been in direct touch -- I know the President has spoken to
President Musharraf, Pervez Musharraf, the leader of Pakistan. What
specifically has the United States asked Pakistan to do?

SECRETARY POWELL:
Well, as you know, the President did speak to him yesterday. I
spoke to President Musharraf several days earlier and Deputy
Secretary Armitage spoke to some associates of the president who
were in town. And we gave them a list of things that we thought
they should be responsive to, and we would be giving them greater
specificity with respect to what we wanted off that list in due
course.

But since that is a matter of, as you
can imagine, sensitive diplomatic discussions between the two sides,
I think it's best that we follow up on that list. They have come
forward with a very supportive statement. They have said yes. And
President Musharraf said that to President Bush against last night.
And so what we now have to do is send a team to Islamabad as soon as
we have a better idea of what we will need and what kind of support
might be required, and talk directly to our Pakistani friends.

MR. BLITZER: When
will that team leave, and who will head the delegation?

SECRETARY POWELL:
It's not yet been decided, but I am sure it will not be in the
distant future -- I would expect in the very near future, the next
several days. And we will put the team together and determine who
the head will be, and when they go over they will also be working
with our ambassador, Ambassador Wendy Chamberlain, who has been
doing such a great job over the last four days.

MR. BLITZER: One of
the statements issued by the Government of Pakistan is that they
will cooperate as long as you don't get the Israelis and the Indians
-- the Government of Israel and the Government of India involved in
this because presumably they would be embarrassed. What is your
reaction to that?

SECRETARY POWELL:
Well, we'll see what their position is. We'll talk to them. And
right now, you know, we are not planning a -- we do not have a
multi-national force going anywhere yet. And so we understand the
sensitivities that would be involved in anything that might involve
India or Israel. And we will take those sensitivities into
account. At the end of the day we will do what we think is
appropriate and necessary.

MR. BLITZER: Have
the Pakistanis agreed to allow the US to go over their air space
with missiles or with planes if, in fact, there is going to be a
military operation aimed at Afghanistan?

SECRETARY POWELL:
What we are going to do is sit down with the Pakistanis and discuss
with them what we might need. I don't want to give any indication
or hints as to what might or might not be planned as a military
operation or a diplomatic operation or any kind of international
initiative at this time.

MR. BLITZER: What
about their ground positions as staging points? Or their ports for
US naval vessels to --

SECRETARY POWELL:
We have not approached them yet on any specific requirements. And
when we do it will be in a confidential channel so we are not giving
any indication of what we might or might not be doing militarily.

MR. BLITZER: If you
look at the map of Afghanistan, it's landlocked. To the north is
Uzbekistan, one of the republics of the former Soviet Union. Is
there any need for cooperation, for example, from Uzbekistan?

SECRETARY POWELL:
We will be talking to the Uzbek authorities. There may be something
they can assist us with. But we will explore that with them. They
have been forthcoming.

MR. BLITZER: And as
you know to the west is Iran. Any prospect at all of seeking and
receiving cooperation from Iran?

SECRETARY POWELL:
Iran has always had difficulty with the Taliban regime and
recognized the nature of that regime. And they gave a rather
forthcoming statement of condolence and how there might be ways of
cooperating with us in the response to what happened. But at the
same time we have always seen Iran as a state that sponsors
terrorism. So we will explore what they have said to us without
making any commitments, of course.

And if they are interested in
fighting terrorism, it has to be terrorism not just related to this
incident but terrorism of the kind that they have sponsored in the
past. So if this represents a new page in Iranian thinking, then
let's see what's written on that new page.

But we're prepared to explore. But
we have no illusions about the nature of the Iranian regime.

MR. BLITZER: So you
would want them specifically, for example, to back off in their
support of Hezbollah?

SECRETARY POWELL:
Yes, they can't say we will help you fighting terrorism here but we
will not help you fighting terrorism elsewhere. Terrorism is
terrorism. And Hezbollah is a threat to the region, just as
al-Qaida is a threat to the world. And I think we have to see this
not only as a struggle against what happened the other day and a
struggle against al-Qaida, if that's who we ultimately determine we
should go against. But there are other acts of terrorism that take
place perpetrated by other terrorist organizations. And so it is a
scourge, as I said before, against civilization. And we have to go
against this scourge in the most comprehensive way possible.

MR. BLITZER: Are
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other states in the Gulf, in the Persian
Gulf region with whom the United States has close relations, are
they ready to cooperate militarily with the United States in this
new war?

SECRETARY POWELL:
They are ready to cooperate. They have all been supportive. Now,
we have not asked them for any particular military components of
that cooperation yet, but I have been very impressed by the speed
with which our moderate Arab friends in the region have come forward
to express condolence and also show support. Saudi Arabia
particularly reminded everybody that they stripped Usama bin Laden
of his citizenship years ago and consider him a disgrace to his
Saudi heritage. Senior Saudi clerics have spoken out strongly
against this kind of activity in the last several days. I am
pleased with that.

We have also heard from Israel and so
many other friends. So lots of people are coming forward. But we
haven't placed any specific military requirements or demands or
requests on any of them yet.

MR. BLITZER: Where
does the Iraqi president, Saddam Hussein, fit into this entire
scenario for war?

SECRETARY POWELL:
Well, he is one of the more despicable persons on the face of the
Earth, and we have not heard of course -- and wouldn't expect to
hear from the Iraqis -- any sense of understanding of this loss of
life and the fact that not just the United States, but 40 other
nations, to include Arab nations who lost lives in the World Trade
Center. So far, we have not discerned any link between the Iraqi
Government and what happened the other day, but we are certainly
examining links that might exist between what happened the other day
and any country and any terrorist organization in the world. We are
determined to run this to ground, get them out of their holes, pull
it all out, see what's there, and then deal with it.

MR. BLITZER: Over
the years since your experience as a young officer in Vietnam and
during the course of your more subsequent experience, you have come
up with what is called The Powell Doctrine: a defined mission,
overwhelming force, exit strategy.

Let's go through that right now.
What is the defined mission?

SECRETARY POWELL:
To make sure that nothing like this happens again; and to make sure
nothing like this happens again by going after the sources, the
terrorist sources and those who harbor terrorist activities and
terrorist groups; and destroying those networks, those groups; and
making sure it is no longer in anyone's interest to harbor or
provide haven to such groups.

MR. BLITZER: It
sounds like a very broadly defined mission.

SECRETARY POWELL:
It isn't. No, I think it's pretty specific. It is a broad mission,
but it is a very specific mission.

MR. BLITZER:
Overwhelming force. What should that require?

SECRETARY POWELL:
It requires political, diplomatic, intelligence, law enforcement,
financial and military effort -- all coming together in a campaign.
And nobody should think this is going to be we go in and it's over
in two days and we're out. This is going to change the way we do
business. It's going to change the way we go about our daily life
here in the United States. It is going to require a greater
emphasis on homeland defense so we can defend ourselves against
those who, notwithstanding our best efforts overseas, are still
trying to get into the country to hurt us. And so we should see
this as a long-term campaign, and do apply decisive force to it.
And that force isn't just military force; it's all the elements of
national power that are at our disposal.

MR. BLITZER:
Presumably, beyond the 50,000 reservists and National Guard troops
who are being activated, the number could go way up.

SECRETARY POWELL:
But don't just see it in terms of activating reservists. The
Pentagon has a fabulous force, all of whom now want to be a part of
this campaign. But just don't see it in those distinctly military
terms because, in fact, going after a lot of these cells and finding
these people, it's more an intelligence war, and we have got a great
intelligence community. It's a law enforcement war. It's finding
out how they get their finances, how do they move people, how do
they cover people when they get into a place like the United
States. They were in this country legally.

And so it's that kind of war which
isn't just a military war. It's a different kind of war. And the
so-called Powell Doctrine, as you describe it, can cover this kind
of contingency as well: Use all the forces at your disposal, make
sure you know what you're going after, and stick with it until you
succeed and get that decisive victory.

MR. BLITZER: And
what is the exit strategy?

SECRETARY POWELL:
That was never part of the Powell Doctrine, but I'll accept the
question. The exit strategy is when we know that the American
people are living in safety without this kind of a threat. And it
may be a long time before we can create such circumstances again,
but we will get there because we are a proud people, we are a strong
people. Notwithstanding the depth of this tragedy and the sadness
it has inflicted upon our nation, look at the strength that has
emerged, look at how people are shaking each other's hands and
hugging each other again and going to our churches and mosques and
synagogues and reinforcing our belief in our society. They can
knock down buildings, they can kill thousands of us and cause so
many Americans to grieve. They can't destroy our society. They
can't destroy who we are. They can't destroy America.

MR. BLITZER: Since
1976 when President Ford was in the White House, there has been this
executive order on the books. Let me read it to you. "No person
employed by or acting on behalf of the United States Government
shall engage in or conspire to engage in assassination."

Is it time to change that?

SECRETARY POWELL:
It is still on the books, and as part of our campaign plan we are
examining everything -- how the CIA does its work, how the FBI and
Justice Departments does its work. Are there laws that need to be
changed or new laws brought into effect to give us more ability to
deal with this kind of threat? So everything is under review.

MR. BLITZER: What
is the difference now, as opposed to ten years ago when you led the
US military? You were Chairman of the Joint Chiefs in the Gulf
War. What is the biggest difference between this war and that war?

SECRETARY POWELL:
That war was easy to see, easy to define, with an enemy that
essentially sat there waiting to be attacked when we finally did
attack it. In this case, the enemy is clever, more resourceful,
broken down across the world in many, many countries in small cells,
doing everything to remain hidden, with a long-time horizon. They
will take months and years to plan an operation. And so it is a
much more difficult enemy to find and fix. But that's what we're
working on -- finding them and fixing them. And when we find them
and fix them, then we will go in and finish them.

MR. BLITZER: So
what I am hearing you saying is that there still may be terrorists
at large even here in the United States right now?

SECRETARY POWELL: I
can't ignore that possibility. It would be foolish to do so. And I
can assure you that the law enforcement activities of the United
States Government are following every lead. Four thousand FBI
agents are working this in the field. Another 3,000 support
personnel are working. The CIA and many other agencies are hard at
work using their vast resources to go after this problem and to deal
with that possibility.

MR. BLITZER: And
finally --

SECRETARY POWELL:
At the same time, even though there may be people wandering around,
America has got to get back to work. We have got to get back to
some sense of normalcy. If we stick in our bunkers and walk around
afraid, they will have won. Well, we're not a fearful people. We
know how to overcome tragedy and we will restore a sense of normalcy
to this society, to this country very quickly in a way that will
impress the world.